Obama calls Joplin High graduates an 'inspiration,' urges them to lead America

JUST WATCHED

Obama delivers Joplin commencement

MUST WATCH

Story highlights

"Your Joplin family loves you and believes in you," the superintendent says

A monster tornado devastated Joplin, Missouri, on May 22, 2011

The storm killed 161 people and flattened a broad swath of the city

Obama tells Joplin High graduates "I'm counting on you to be leaders"

Calling the students an inspiration "to me (and) the world," President Barack Obama urged Joplin High School graduates Monday to heed the lessons they've learned and spirit they've shown to rebuild not only their tornado-ravaged Missouri city, but also their nation.

"America only succeeds when we all pitch in and pull together -- and I'm counting on you to be leaders in that effort," said Obama. "Because you are from Joplin. And you've already defied the odds."

Minutes after 450 seniors from the same Missouri school got their diplomas last May 22, a monster twister tore through the community. More than 161 people were killed -- the worst death toll for such a tornado since modern record-keeping began in 1950 -- while dozens of buildings were torn to shreds by winds as strong as 200 mph.

One of them was Joplin High School itself, with the damage so severe that students ended up attending classes in a vacant section of the city's Northpark Mall.

Monday night's graduation ceremony was personal, with students reflecting with humor and perspective on their tumultuous school days and one administrator leading them in a chant to show their "Eagle pride."

Photos: Demolishing tornado-ravaged hospital 7 photos

Photos: Demolishing tornado-ravaged hospital7 photos

Demolishing Joplin's tornado-ravaged hospital – A 4-foot-tall wooden cross that hung on the emergency department waiting room wall at St. John's Mercy Hospital in Joplin, Missouri, will lead the way from the demolition site to the new hospital site on Sunday, January 29.

Hide Caption

1 of 7

Photos: Demolishing tornado-ravaged hospital7 photos

Demolishing Joplin's tornado-ravaged hospital – Debris litters the hospital after one of America's deadliest tornadoes hit the town in May. Workers have salvaged recyclable material, and the building is to be nearly empty when the demolition work begins.

Hide Caption

2 of 7

Photos: Demolishing tornado-ravaged hospital7 photos

Demolishing Joplin's tornado-ravaged hospital – A photo shows the hospital before the tornado hit on May 22, 2011, left, and after the tornado. The building sustained significant damage during a direct hit.

Hide Caption

3 of 7

Photos: Demolishing tornado-ravaged hospital7 photos

Demolishing Joplin's tornado-ravaged hospital – Damage is visible from the rooftop. The hospital was treating 183 people when the storm struck, Lynn Britton, president of Sisters of Mercy Health System, said at the time.

Hide Caption

4 of 7

Photos: Demolishing tornado-ravaged hospital7 photos

Demolishing Joplin's tornado-ravaged hospital – The tornado's destruction is seen in the hospital's emergency waiting area. Patients were taken to hospitals as far away as Springfield, Missouri, and Northwest Arkansas.

Hide Caption

5 of 7

Photos: Demolishing tornado-ravaged hospital7 photos

Demolishing Joplin's tornado-ravaged hospital – The storm hit a mother-and-baby room. One glass facade of the building was blown out, and authorities evacuated the medical center, Ray Foreman, a meteorologist with CNN affiliate KODE in Joplin, said in May.

Hide Caption

6 of 7

Photos: Demolishing tornado-ravaged hospital7 photos

Demolishing Joplin's tornado-ravaged hospital – The storm wrecked the hospital's interior. At the time, residents 70 miles away from Joplin in Dade County, Missouri, found X-rays from St. John's in their driveways, Foreman said.

MUST WATCH

JUST WATCHED

Students remember Joplin one year later

MUST WATCH

"No matter where you are or what you do, your Joplin family loves you and believes in you," said school district Superintendent C.J. Huff, fighting back tears. "We are so very proud of you."

Obama alluded to students' unique struggles during his own commencement address, which was held on the campus of Missouri Southern State University. He referred, too, to broader challenges facing they their townsfolk to work together, dream big and remain positive in adopting a new slogan of "Remember. Rejoice. And rebuild."

"We can define our own lives not by what happens to us, but by how we respond," said the president, who returned to Joplin for the first time since attending a memorial service a week after the disaster.

"We can choose to carry on, we can choose to make a difference in the world. And in doing so, we can make true what's written in scripture: that 'tribulation produces perseverance, and perseverance (produces) character, and character, hope.'"

The story of Joplin also showed there are "so many good people in this world," something that he insisted the students never forget.

While Joplin has worked fast to rebuild, many of the hundreds of businesses destroyed by the tornado have not been able to get back to full speed. Some 332 households still live in Federal Emergency Management Agency trailers and are unable to rebuild their homes.

But they've gotten some help. The White House released a statement Monday noting the federal government has approved $21 million for directly affected Missouri residents, not including $97 million to the state of Missouri to support rebuilding projects and $41.3 million in low-interest disaster loans via the U.S. Small Business Administration for individuals, businesses and non-profit groups.

JUST WATCHED

Life after destruction & disaster

MUST WATCH

JUST WATCHED

Facebook page returns tornado pics

MUST WATCH

Facebook page returns tornado pics02:23

PLAY VIDEO

And the city of Joplin -- which is calling Tuesday's anniversary a Day of Unity, with events including a commemorative walk through the city -- estimates that almost 130,000 volunteers have logged hundreds of thousands of hours since the tornado.

It was during his remarks about community and unity that Obama shifted from discussing Joplin more exclusively, to talking about the nation in general.

"We need God. We need each other. We are important to each other. And we're stronger together than we are on our own," he said. "That's the spirit that's allowing all of you to rebuild this city. It's the same spirit we need right now to help rebuild America."

The Joplin High graduates are particularly qualified to do so, according to Obama. They have walked the walk -- by pitching in to assist their neighbors, pursuing their education despite the chaos around them and learning from other city citizens and total strangers about what people can do, against the odds, when they work together.

"Some of life's strongest bonds are the ones we forge when everything around us seems broken," the president said. "And even though I expect some of you will ultimately end up leaving Joplin, I'm convinced that Joplin will never leave you."